The Risks Of Running An E-Commerce Store

It’s easy to begin an eCommerce business today – you can set one up through a free website builder or a specialist shopping platform like Shopify – but there are risks involved. If you don’t understand what those risks are, your online business may be destined to fail.

Risk #1: Nobody buys from your store

Setting up an online store is only the beginning. You then need to market yourself, create a brand identity, and keep an eye on the competition. Failure to do any of those things will cost you badly, as you won’t get many (if any) people logging on to your site to see what you have to offer. You should also ensure your SEO is in order, making sure your site is easily visible within Google’s search engine rankings.

Risk #2: The possibility of cyber attack

Don’t assume your business is safe from cyber attack. As a smaller operation, you are more vulnerable to attack than your bigger cousins in the shopping arena, so you do need to focus on your online security. This includes purchasing antivirus software, installing firewalls, and using a random password generator that isn’t easily guessable by an online miscreant.

Risk #3: A disgruntled customer

The customer is always right! Right? Well, not always, but you still need to treat them like royalty. If a mistake has been made on your part – perhaps you sent them the wrong order – you need to apologise and rectify the matter. If you are blameless, you should still be professional within your service to the customer, and be as patient and and as gracious as is humanly possible.

Risk #4: Customer fraud

Here’s where the customer is definitely in the wrong. While most people you make transactions with are trustworthy, there are still those who will try and cheat you occasionally. A fraudster will try and use somebody else’s credit card to make a purchase, be that one they have stolen, or with details they have procured from your site. You need to guard yourself against either possibility, so as well as focussing on cybersecurity, you should also consider Jumio’s Netverify service; giving you the tools to fully-authenticate the people you are doing business with.

Risk #5: Logistics issues

A real headache; any number of things can go wrong within the logistics of your business. You might run out of stock, your supplier may be out of action for a while, shipments may be delayed, and your courier service might deliver to the wrong address. It’s a tangled web of unhappiness for both you and the customer, so you need to take steps to deal with any potential issues. This might include having a second supplier to hand, for those occasions when your regular supplier literally falls short, and implementing a tracking service to monitor deliveries.

Finally

You can make a tidy profit from your online store, but you do need to pay attention to the risks. Follow our advice, and you stand a greater chance of success in making it in the competitive world of eCommerce. We wish you the best of luck!

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